And although he managed four goals in a match-winning display against Greater Western Sydney in round 16, his form has been poor otherwise.

The Bulldogs replaced Dale Morris (hamstring) with Matthew Suckling.

Hawthorn have turned serious following last week’s shock loss to Melbourne, recalling premiership trio James Frawley, Paul Puopolo and Liam Shiels among five inclusions for Saturday’s crunch game against North Melbourne at the MCG.

The Hawks have lost James Sicily to suspension, and defender Ben Stratton to a pectoral strain.

North Melbourne have taken a punt by naming both Ben Brown (knee) and Scott Thompson (adductor) despite their injury concerns.

Geelong will be without Daniel Menzel (groin) and Andrew Mackie (managed) for Sunday’s showdown with Richmond, while the Tigers are missing Ben Griffiths (groin).

The Giants have been boosted by the return of star midfielder Dylan Shiel for Saturday’s clash with West Coast.

Adam Kennedy and Matthew Kennedy also come into the side.

West Coast resisted the urge to recall out-of-form recruits Lewis Jetta and Jack Redden, with the Eagles’ sole change being the inclusion of defender Sam Butler for Jackson Nelson.

Port Adelaide have been boosted in the ruck with the return of Matthew Lobbe.

Lobbe has been sidelined for the past three months with a knee injury, but he returns to face Melbourne at Adelaide Oval on Saturday night.

The Demons have been bolstered by the return of star forward Jesse Hogan, but his bid to play with fellow rising star Sam Weideman has been put on hold after last week’s debutant succumbed to a quad injury.

Young St Kilda forward Paddy McCartin has been rewarded for his five-goal haul in the VFL with a recall for Saturday night’s clash with the Sydney Swans.

The Swans go in unchanged after thrashing Port Adelaide by 67 points last week.

Brisbane have made four changes for Saturday’s clash with Carlton at the Gabba, with ruckman Stef Martin the biggest inclusion after being managed for the past fortnight.

David Cuningham has been named for his Carlton debut as the Blues attempt to end their eight-match losing run, while Liam Jones has been recalled.

Essendon have been hit hard by injuries, with Courtenay Dempsey (hamstring), Brendon Goddard (groin), Aaron Francis (calf), and Darcy Parish (rested) all going out of the side for Sunday’s match against Gold Coast.

The Suns have lost Tom Nicholls (knee) and Alex Sexton (quad).

Adelaide have regained Scott Thompson and Mitch McGovern for Sunday’s match against Fremantle in Perth, but ruckman Sam Jacobs will miss again with an ankle injury.

* All Offers and Promotions posted in this article excludes NSW residents.